Hi all, new boy on the block.
I fancy having a go at some macro work but my humble Fuji S9600 isn`t really the best tool in the world for it and I have seen an item (lenses) on Ebay which I would appreciate some constructive comments on, ie; will they produce closer images for me, or are they any good at all or are they worthless, or whatever!! Here`s the link:
58mm Close Up Lens Kit +1,+2,+4, Macro for Fuji Finepix

Thanks in anticipation,

Schnaaps

EDIT: I've replaced your raw URL with the [url=..]..[/url] syntax as it was so long it was causing formatting issues. Hope you don't mind (click the Edit button if you are curious). Bob Andersson.

Hi Schnaaps.
I have no experience with the Fuji S9600 so I can only speak about my close up lenses on my Tamron 18-200 (and Canon EOS 350D).
The close up lenses are nice for trying to take macro pictures. You put them on your lens, they act like magnifying glass, and allow you to focus on closer objects.
For example, if my Tamron can focus from 45cm, with the +4 it can focus from 10cm (it's just an example, I don't know the real focusing distance with the close up lens...).

The problem is simple, quality.
The quality of the picture is lower, also, you can see a noticeable fringing in the picture.

To sum it up, it’s nice to have them but I don’t use it too often. If you are really into macro, you should buy real macro equipment.

If oyu go into close-up lenses, go with the best: The Canon 500D. It comes in four sizes (52, 58, 72, 77mm) but can be used with the appropriate step-down rings easily on lenses with other filter-threads.
They're achromats, which reduces color fringing and have 2 diopters (i.e. a focal length of 500mm). So if your lens focusses at infinity the subject has to be at 500mm distance from the front-lens to be in sharp focus.
These should work well with tele-lenses/zooms from 80mm upwards.

To reduce the IQ loss, step down your aperture to f11-14 and should get your best results. I explored macro work to see if I enjoyed it with a cheap +4 Hoya close-up. I then made the toss up between getting auto extension tubes or a dedicated macro lens (Nikkor 105mm). In the end I got myself a sturdy tripod which has really helped me control my macro photography much more. With the S9600, close-up filters are the only way to get your camera to do more macro work - play it by price and interest. If you have a genuine interest in it, then invest in the 500D Canon. The two lenses that make it up do reduce IQ loss BUT I should stress that you should have a good tripod before embarking on macro work. Otherwise the set you've seen should be sufficient for making a start into exploring macro work.